Saijo Sake Festival

I have been to (and thrown out of) a few Real Ale festivals in my time. It's guaranteed drunkeness. Would the Japanese version live up to these expectations?

We headed to Saijo in Hiroshima ready to sample the finest sake that Japan has to offer. So here was the deal: 1000 yen (five pounds) entry fee then unlimited sake from 11am to 5pm. You are given a sake cup, then you line up and choose your poison, drink it and then move on to the next line.A recipe for happiness/disaster. We foresaw the likelyhood that there would be projectile vomiting throughout the course of the day so were taking bets on the time when the first person would spew. I chose 3:45. Yours truly was the first to ralph at 3:32. I had the closest time but due to the chance of foul play and intentional spewing the next closest person (Cass) took the money. Bastard.

I haven't been so happy for ages. I was loving japan all over again. That was until it closed and we headed into Hiroshima. Tiredness and drunkeness kicked in and I participated in the worst ever, wrist slittingly bad karaoke session of my life. I was not loving Japan.

Sake doesn't give you that much of a hangover though.

HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY
Now if that isn't the face of an alcoholic I don't know what is. (Sorry Satomi)
My Sake cup.6 hours of drinking was obviously too much for the Japanese lightweights. Bless them.
Rick and Brett also fell victim to the Sake. Brett passed out for three hours in a toilet. I think we're going to get on well. Yes Pete, that's Yasue. She seemed to be really genki but I can't remember what we talked about.
Not so HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY